Two Nationals players are in the mix for Rawlings Gold Glove Awards, which are presented annually to the best defensive players in both the American League and National League at every fielding position. First baseman Adam LaRoche and shortstop Ian Desmond have been selected as finalists for the awards, which will be handed out tomorrow night at 9:30 p.m. on ESPN2. Neither player has previously won a Gold Glove. LaRoche will be up against Atlanta's Freddie Freeman and Cincinnati's Joey...

The Orioles' first-round selections in the last two First-Year Player Drafts head Baseball America's list of Top 10 prospects in the organization. The publication's list reads as follows: 1. Dylan Bundy, RHP 2. Kevin Gausman, RHP 3. Jonathan Schoop, 2B/SS 4. Nicky Delmonico, 1B/2B 5. Eduardo Rodriguez, LHP 6. LJ Hoes, OF 7. Xavier Avery, OF 8. Mike Wright, RHP 9. Branden Kline, RHP 10. Adrian Marin, SS Kline was chosen in the second round of the 2012 draft out of the University of...

If you're reading this, that means that Hurricane Sandy hasn't wiped out your power just yet. Let's hope it stays that way. The chatter will never end regardless of what the calendar reads, but as of this morning, baseball is now over until the middle of February. Count me among those not ready for it to go. I was hoping the Tigers would put up a fight and make the World Series interesting, or at the very least get us to a Game 5 and give Justin Verlander a chance to wow the sports world...

Taking the advice of family and friends, I bought 12 cases of bottled waters in preparation for Hurricane Sandy. Meanwhile, I spent a large part of my childhood drinking out of a garden hose. I'm a survivor. I'll be brief this morning, as I continue to charge the batteries on my laptop and iPhone and stack my canned goods. I'm afraid that I'll run low on Beefaroni. I may need to make another grocery store run before the weather really turns bad. Folks laughed when I threw away my...

There can be a variety of ways to try and measure the impact that a minor league coach or instructor has in his job. Do individual players get better on his watch? Do some of those players make the major leagues and help the big club? But there can be no doubt that Orioles minor league batters made a huge gain in one key statistical area in their first season under the watchful eye of minor league hitting coordinator Mike Boulanger, who was hired by Dan Duquette last January. In...

Nationals prospect Anthony Rendon continues to work on his defense at third base as the Arizona Fall League's Salt River Rafters work through their schedule. At the plate, it is all about timing. "I am just trying to get my rhythm back while I am hitting," Rendon said. "I am trying to get more efficient and getting started earlier to be ready to hit." Defensively, though, Rendon admitted there has been a perception that he looks on the field like he isn't all the way into every pitch....

The improvement of the Orioles pitching staff this year was impressive. The season-ending team ERA of 3.90 was sixth-best in the league, one year after the Orioles were 14th and last in that stat in 2011. The Orioles' team ERA of 3.73 after the All-Star break would have ranked third in the league if they had maintained that number all year. Two men named Rick - Adair and Peterson - had a lot to do with that. Adair had pitchers improve on his watch at the big league level and Peterson took...

Did anyone think the Giants would jump out to a 3-0 lead on the Tigers in the World Series? Tim Lincecum has been a beast out of the bullpen. Another starter-turned-reliever success story. I've been asked who would replace Rick Peterson as the Orioles' director of pitching development if he's hired as the Red Sox's pitching coach. I don't know whether the club would fill that role. It's unique. It's been created for Peterson and his unique talents. Not everyone carries around the...

When it comes to the back of their rotation, the Nationals have options. They could tender John Lannan a contract and go into spring training thinking he'll take the No. 5 spot in their rotation. They could re-sign Edwin Jackson to a multi-year deal and go forward with him as one of their top five guys. They could also dip into the free agent market and bring someone in to round out what sets up as one of baseball's top starting staffs with Stephen Strasburg, Gio Gonzalez, Jordan Zimmermann...

As we attempt to piece together the Orioles rotation for 2013, we must keep in mind that Chris Tillman is out of minor league options. Tillman can't be sent down if he isn't deemed worthy of a starting job, and he's never pitched in relief. Fifty-one major league appearances, 51 starts. The Orioles have placed other starters in the bullpen, including Jake Arrieta and Brian Matusz, but they've always resisted changing Tillman's role, even if only temporarily. Jason Hammel, Wei-Yin Chen...